Dr Helen Mackay

Who was Helen Mackay?

Helen Mackay was born on 23 May 1891 in Inverness, Scotland. In 1914 she qualified as a doctor after studying at the London School of Medicine for Women at the Royal Free Hospital in the early 1910s. This was the only place that women could train to become doctors. In the early 1920s she became the first female house physician and surgeon at the Queen Elizabeth’s Hospital for Children in Hackney Road. For nearly 40 years she worked at the Mothers’ Hospital becoming one of the first female consultants in any speciality. In 1926 she became the Physician-in-Charge of Neo-Nates, and she was also the first Honorary paediatrician at the Mothers’. In addition to these posts, she was also consultant paediatrician at Hackney Hospital (the first person to hold this post), and in 1934, she became the first woman to be elected as a fellow of the Royal College of Physicians. Among many honours given to her throughout her career, in 1945, she was one of the first five female doctors to join the British Paediatric Association.

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